This invention relates to a method and apparatus for a household appliance such as, but not limited to a refrigerator. More specifically, this invention relates to such an appliance being able to monitor power outage duration.
Refrigerating appliances such as refrigerators, freezers, and related appliances require electrical power for refrigeration. For example, electrical power can be used for powering a compressor for compressing a refrigerant, an evaporator for generating cool air and/or a refrigerating fan for discharging cool air, or otherwise using external power to refrigerate. When this external power is interrupted such as during a power outage, refrigeration ceases. If the power outage is sufficiently long in duration, the contents of the refrigerator, typically food, can spoil.
Thus, if an individual is aware that a power outage has occurred, an individual is suspect of the food in the refrigerator and its fitness for consumption. If only a very short power outage has occurred, then there is no real cause for concern. However, if a power outage of sufficient duration has occurred, an individual may find it desirable to discard food from the refrigerator and/or otherwise avoid consuming it. Problems relating to power outages can occur in other types of household appliances as well.
Unfortunately, an individual may not be able to tell that a power outage has occurred or the duration of that power outage.
Thus, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for a household appliance that improves over the state of the art.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a household appliance capable of automatically determining that a power outage has occurred.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for a household appliance that determines the duration of a power outage.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for a household appliance that is capable of discerning that multiple power outages have occurred.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for a household appliance that alerts a user that a power outage has occurred.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for a household appliance that requires an acknowledgement from the user that the user acknowledges that a power outage has occurred.
These and other objects, features, or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and claims that follow.